Posts Tagged ‘Islam’


Torrey Olsen on Faith-Based Humanitarianism and World Vision

What is it like to be shot at and abducted while serving as a religiously-based humanitarian aid worker? Torrey Olsen, who spent 15 years in West Africa with World Vision and other organizations details his experiences and what he learned in the field. He also discusses the history and operation of World Vision, a Christian-based relief organization that operations in roughly 100 countries, including some of the most dangerous hot spots around the world. We examine various projects World Vision undertakes including an ecumenical outreach program to Muslims concerning the Ebola pandemic in Africa.

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Karen Elliott House on Journalism and Saudi Arabia

Pulitzer Prize recipient Karen Elliott House joins us to discuss her career as a diplomatic correspondent in the Middle East for the Wall Street Journal and a number of important changes that are occurring in what many consider to be one of the most stable countries in that turbulent region. After discussing the life of a female reporter covering a male-dominated culture, which has a few surprising benefits, we review Saudi Arabia’s socio-economic landscape and internal tensions that are generating support for reform.

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Ani Sarkissian on Politics and Religious Civil Society in Turkey

With Turkey playing a pivotal role in the Middle East, and a country that is often viewed as a model for democracy in the Islamic world, we take a look at this country’s history, politics, and civil society with Prof. Ani Sarkissian of Michigan State University. Are liberalizing reforms that are designed to make it easier to create civic associations having their intended effect? Or is there something to Turkey’s history and political structure that are creating some unintended consequences?

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Mark David Hall on Religious Minorities in the U.S. Founding

Mark David Hall returns for his fourth stint on Research on Religion’s July 4th celebration with yet more interesting insights into religious during the U.S. revolutionary era. This time Mark discusses the role played by religious minorities including Jews, Quakers, Baptists, and even Muslims.

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David Smith on Religion, International Relations, and Foreign Policy

Prof. David Smith of the University of Sydney returns to discuss the role religion plays in international relations and foreign policy. We chat about why international relations scholars have de-emphasized the role religion plays in cross-national interactions and how this might be changing. David also reviews how scholars now think that religion plays a role in diplomacy and foreign policy.

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Religious Liberty & Economic Prosperity: A Panel Discussion

On October 10, 2013, a distinguished panel of scholars gathered at Georgetown University to discuss the relationship between religious liberty and economic prosperity. Sponsored by the Religious Freedom Project of the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs and moderated by Prof. William Inboden, the panelists included Ilan Alon (Rollins College), Timur Kuran (Duke), Ian Linden (Tony Blair Faith Foundation), and Rebecca Shah (Religious Freedom Project). They discuss the various causal (and sometimes non-causal) pathways wherein greater religious toleration and freedom promotes an environment conducive to entrepreneurship, immigration, and the institutional expansion of othe civil liberties.

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Religious Freedom & Political Flourishing: A Panel Discussion

On October 10, 2013, a distinguished panel of scholars gathered at Georgetown University to discuss the relationship between religious liberty to political freedom and social flourishing. Sponsored by the Religious Freedom Project of the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs and moderated by Prof. Timothy Shah, the panelists included Dan Philpott (Notre Dame), Nukhet Sandal (Ohio U), Ani Sarkissian (Michigan State), and Tony Gill (U of Washington). They examine issues whether democracies can suppress religious liberty and still remain democratic, whether increases in religious liberty can promote other civil liberties, and whether religious freedom can facilitate transitions from authoritarianism.

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Ron Hassner on Sacred Spaces & Holy Conflict

Why are conflicts over holy shrines and other sacred spaces so often violent and intractable? Prof. Ron Hassner (UC-Berkeley, political science) offers an intringuing answer that revolves around the nature and various characteristics of sacred ground. Our discussion covers the breakdown of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians in 2000, the recent controversy over the “Ground Zero mosque” in New York City and several other examples.

This is an encore performance of an interview that aired in the fall of 2010. We will be back with a fresh interview next week.

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Bradley Murg on Russian Orthodoxy after the Soviet Union

Whereas the Soviet Union was noted for being a state that sought to repress all forms of religious expression, the Russian Orthodox Church continued to exist in a weakened form throughout Russia’s communist era. Following the collapse of the Soviet regime in 1991, Rusian Orthodoxy has re-emerged from its slumber to reassert itself in the nation’s culture and institutional structure. How has it fared over the past two decades? Bradley Murg, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Washington, explores this question revealing much about the nature of religion in Russian society as well as a thing or two about its evolving political structure.

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Carolyn Warner on Religion & Generosity

Why and how do religious groups motivate generosity? We visit with Prof. Carolyn Warner (ASU) who is involved in a multi-national, cross-faith, and interdisciplinary investigation exploring why religious individuals give money and volunteer time to help others. As part of a larger team of scholars, she has conducted interviews with Catholics and Muslims in France, Ireland, Italy, and Turkey using both person-to-person interviews and an experimental design to see if there are differences across these to faith traditions. She and her team discover that Catholics tend to be motivated by “love of God” whereas Muslims are moved to give out of a “duty to God.” This sheds light on whether organizations need to provide close monitoring and sanctioning of volunteer behavior or whether individuals can be counted to be generous on their own.

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